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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27311614">Going Under</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zaniida/pseuds/Zaniida'>Zaniida</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Exile Ain't No Vacation [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Thor (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Eye Trauma, Gen, Injury Recovery, Medical Care, Original Doctors, See End Note for Whump Tags, a terrible horrible no good very bad day, severe physical trauma</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:35:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>748</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27311614</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zaniida/pseuds/Zaniida</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Having barely survived less than twenty-four hours in the desert on his own, Thor is now taken in by the medical staff of the local hospital.  Y'know how, in the film, he attacks the staff, has a comedic moment of being knocked out, breaks loose and is fine within a few hours?  Yeah, it's not gonna be that easy on him.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Exile Ain't No Vacation [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1983865</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Going Under</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/black_feather_fiction/gifts">black_feather_fiction</a>.</li>


        <li>
            Inspired by

            <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24896788">I Am Yours, And All – Or The Arduous Emancipation Of One Loki Odinson</a> by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/black_feather_fiction/pseuds/black_feather_fiction">black_feather_fiction</a>.
        </li>

    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p><strong>black_feather_fiction</strong>, I looked through my notes for recipients, and determined that I don't have a clue who might appreciate Thorwhump other than the one I already gifted the first fic to.  So this is for you, in case you wanted to watch Thor spend a little time feeling like Loki feels in <em>your</em> fic ^_^ lightning aftermath and all.</p><p>The whole point of this series is to shake Thor up and give him a reason to truly look over his actions and attitudes and make some crucial changes to the way he deals with others.  Y'know, the character arc that the original film <em>didn't</em> give us.  Let's see how badly I have to break this boy down before he can let go of that tremendous ego and actually decide to consider the way his actions affect others.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“<em>Unresponsive!</em> ” Sandy shouts over the rain, which has started to really come down in earnest.  On what could be called an up side, it’s started to wash a little of the mud off her patient.</p><p>She’s trying to stay calm, clinical, detached, because she’s never actually seen a case this bad and if she had to guess at the chances for survival she would not guess double digits.  “Not breathing.  Bob, it’s bad.”</p><p>“Let’s get him inside first,” Bob says, just as lightning splits the sky again.  “Help me with this.”</p><p>As quickly as they can manage, they get the casualty immobilized and pull him into the back of the minivan, hopping inside and closing the door.  It’s the best they’ve got for an ambulance around here <em>(white with a red cross stenciled on the side, the rear seats removed to make room for patients)</em>, and this guy’s just lucky that someone spotted him right as he got hit.</p><p><em>Lucky</em>.  As if.</p><p>But if he hadn’t made it almost to town, he’d <em>definitely</em> have died out here.</p><p> </p><p><em>Where did he even come from?</em> she wonders, but does not speculate aloud, so as not to distract from the treatment steps.</p><p><em>Not walking, not responsive (even to pain), not breathing</em>.  But he just got hit, so there’s still a chance.  Strike victims often do fine if they get quality CPR immediately.</p><p>Just… that’s clearly not the only thing wrong, and there’s mud on his face and in his mouth and probably in his lungs.</p><p>She clears the airway as best as she can as Bob gets out the equipment, and then Bob has to drive <em>(carefully, because a rainstorm in the desert is always an adventure)</em> and she’s on her own.  Assuming they want the patient to survive long enough to make it to better care.</p><p><em>Airway, breathing, bleeding.  (“Circulation” never did make much sense to her head, not enough to help her remember that step.)</em>  She gets the tube down his throat and pumps the bag and watches the open wound in his lower abdomen <em>not</em> bleed, hoping that it’s not a sign that his entire circulatory system has shut down.</p><p>He’s still got a heartbeat.  That’s something, at least.</p><p>But he’s pale, so pale that his extremities are turning blue.  That’s cold (he’s definitely cold), maybe a problem with his lungs (that too), but more likely shock, because a lot of factors here add up to shock.  Blood loss from the wound.  Bruises all over and plenty of swelling, so that’s even <em>more</em> fluid taken out of the system.  Badly sunburnt, with blisters, so he spent at least a few hours in the sun yesterday, and if that’s the case and he’s gone without treatment and he’s shown up here with no visible means of travel then he’s been walking through the desert on his own, which <em>screams</em> dehydration.  Any one of those could cause shock <em>all on its own</em>, and here he’s got <em>four</em>.</p><p>The wound feels hot without even touching it, so that’s infection.  His lungs sound gurgly—fluid in the lungs.  If Bob weren’t driving, they might try to get it out, but their best bet is to get to the hospital where they have a lot more options <em>(and more room to maneuver than the back of a modified minivan in the midst of a thunderstorm)</em>.</p><p>How did he manage to get so badly beaten up?  Besides the fern-like burn patterns of the lightning strike running all down his shoulder, he’s bruised all over and covered in mud, with cactus spines embedded in the flesh along his side and his back and <em>in one eye</em>, keeping the lid open <em>(they didn’t have a chance to do anything about that, but it’s hardly the most pressing issue right now)</em>.</p><p>The shoulder that wasn’t hit by lightning looks to be dislocated; his wrist is swollen <em>(sprain? fracture?)</em>, and both hands are puffy, like he’s been walking for miles without a break.  On a swollen knee <em>(she could make that out through the shredded remains of his pants)</em>, and she doesn’t even want to think about what might be under his boots.</p><p>With nothing else she can do besides keep pumping air into his lungs, she tries to keep her own breaths calm, and prays.  Not even to a specific deity; she hasn’t believed in anyone specific since she hit college.  Simply, to any god who might hear her through the downpour: <em>Please, keep this man alive</em>.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p><strong>Content Warnings:</strong> Besides the general whump prompts, any warnings not on this whump list should get pointed out in the chapter notes.</p><p>Thor is having a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (Prompt #16).  Let's see what's on the menu!</p><p><strong>Injuries:</strong> Broken Bones (#12); a Puncture Wound (Alt #1) leading to Blood Loss (#10) and Infection (#21); Delayed Drowning (#13) leading to Intubation (#29); and <strong>Eye Trauma</strong> just for good measure, leading to Blindfolded (#24) and Blindness (#26) (don't worry, it's only <em>one</em> eye).  All of this puts him in the Emergency Room (another #29), for which purpose he gets Carried (#7) and they're in a rush (Running Out of Time: #4).</p><p><strong>Mental/Emotional Trauma:</strong> He's going to be Disoriented (#25), and I'm hoping to give him a Panic Attack (#18), possibly to the point of a Failed Escape (#5).  I'm also considering Hallucinations (#16).</p><p>Also, there's Extreme Weather (#27), so that's always fun, too.</p><p>Did I miss anything?</p><p>Oh, and the doctors are cameos of my two favorite professors in college.  I always thought their surnames would make for amusing doctor characters.  I'm doing my best with the medical, but I don't have as much time to sink into it as I might normally take, so please bear with the inaccuracies (though if you notice something major, point it out! I would like to do better, especially when it comes to the steps of first aid in a crisis).</p></blockquote></div></div>
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